Myrosinase info
This report is a fact about cooking cruciferous vegetables from the Brassicaceae or Cruciferae family. This includes but is not limited to arugula, broccoli, brussel sprouts, bok choy, horseradish, cauliflower, cabbage, collard greens, kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, rutabaga, turnips, watercress, and wasabi.
When these vegetables are cooked, the enzyme myrosinase is destroyed by heat. This enzyme combined with the precursor glucoraphanin is needed to produce sulforaphane which can prevent and fight cancer, among its many other beneficial contributions. One way to avoid this destruction is to chop up the crucifers and let them sit about 40 minutes prior to cooking. This allows for formation of sulforaphane.
Frozen vegetables are healthy for you and can actually be healthier than overage “fresh” vegetables. However, the frozen vegetables are blanched or flash cooked to stop the work of enzymes and give them a longer shelf life. This leads to the problem described mentioned above. To provide myrosinase, which was the enzyme destroyed in this blanching, simply sprinkle some mustard seed powder (1/2 to a teaspoon) on the crucifers after the cooking.
Yet another way to allow the sulforaphane to form is to add Daikon radish or raw crucifers to the already cooked crucifers.
When making soup using cruciferous vegetables, always chop up the veggies and allow to sit before putting in the pot.
You may have heard the expression “better living through chemistry”—well, here it is in action without help from Monsanto or Dupont!!
Cruciferous Vegetables
• Arugula
• Bok choy
• Broccoli
• Brussels sprouts
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Chinese cabbage
• Collard greens
• Daikon radish
• Horseradish
• Kale
• Kohlrabi
• Land cress
• Mustard greens
• Radish
• Rutabaga
• Shepherd's purse
• Turnip
• Watercress
Yellow & brown mustard seed
This report is a fact about cooking cruciferous vegetables from the Brassicaceae or Cruciferae family. This includes but is not limited to arugula, broccoli, brussel sprouts, bok choy, horseradish, cauliflower, cabbage, collard greens, kale, kohlrabi, mustard greens, rutabaga, turnips, watercress, and wasabi.
When these vegetables are cooked, the enzyme myrosinase is destroyed by heat. This enzyme combined with the precursor glucoraphanin is needed to produce sulforaphane which can prevent and fight cancer, among its many other beneficial contributions. One way to avoid this destruction is to chop up the crucifers and let them sit about 40 minutes prior to cooking. This allows for formation of sulforaphane.
Frozen vegetables are healthy for you and can actually be healthier than overage “fresh” vegetables. However, the frozen vegetables are blanched or flash cooked to stop the work of enzymes and give them a longer shelf life. This leads to the problem described mentioned above. To provide myrosinase, which was the enzyme destroyed in this blanching, simply sprinkle some mustard seed powder (1/2 to a teaspoon) on the crucifers after the cooking.
Yet another way to allow the sulforaphane to form is to add Daikon radish or raw crucifers to the already cooked crucifers.
When making soup using cruciferous vegetables, always chop up the veggies and allow to sit before putting in the pot.
You may have heard the expression “better living through chemistry”—well, here it is in action without help from Monsanto or Dupont!!
Cruciferous Vegetables
• Arugula
• Bok choy
• Broccoli
• Brussels sprouts
• Cabbage
• Cauliflower
• Chinese cabbage
• Collard greens
• Daikon radish
• Horseradish
• Kale
• Kohlrabi
• Land cress
• Mustard greens
• Radish
• Rutabaga
• Shepherd's purse
• Turnip
• Watercress
Yellow & brown mustard seed